Throughout the dynasties, martial arts exercises were nothing more than reviewing the armed forces, demonstrating force, and intimidating foreign enemies.
The East Palace has not yet been officially registered, but the emperor allowed Liu Hong to first organize the six princes to participate in this autumn's competition. It can be seen that in the heart of the emperor, or in the hearts of the two saints in the palace, the position of prince belongs to Liu Hong.
As for whether the Crown Prince's six-rate rate can be among the best in this competition...
Well, Jia Cong is not optimistic at all.
Not to mention the superficial knowledge learned in the military training in the previous life, let alone the elite of the Forbidden Army, any member of the Nine Sides can defeat a grass-roots team like Prince Liu Lie who has not even decided on a general.
Jia Cong looked at the overly excited Liu Hong and said quietly: "Fourth brother, wake up, it's not dark yet and you're starting to dream..."
"Hey, Brother Cong, do you think I'm daydreaming?"
Liu Hong blinked at Jia Cong mysteriously and took out a scroll of handwriting from his sleeve.
"I'm not stupid, how could I not be prepared? Look!"
Jia Cong took it and took a look, he was extremely shocked.
Good guy, the Supreme Emperor actually took out a thousand elites from Habayashi Lang and sent them to the East Palace to form the Prince's six-rate team.
Then he ordered the Fifth Army Governor's Office to recruit good family members from the capital to make up for the shortfall, and set up a total of 5,000 people in the East Palace Sixth Army in advance. The station was located near the Yuhe River in the west of Beijing.
"Hey! The old man has spent a lot of money!"
Three Thousand Yulin Lang, the strongest army in Daxia, now actually transferred one third of them to the East Palace to serve under Liu Hong.
Jia Cong returned the handwritten letter to Liu Hong and sighed for a while: "It turns out that the fourth brother is confident. With just this Qian Yu Linlang, he can almost reach the top three."
But Liu Hong smiled slightly, shook his head and said, "I don't want to sit back and enjoy the success. I boasted so much in front of the emperor and my father. Habayashi Lang will only serve as an assistant. The only ones who will actually compete are the soldiers who have just entered the military camp." Choose!"
Ga!
Jia Cong didn't know whether he should describe the future Crown Prince as ambitious or naive. It took him a long time to hold back a sentence.
"Fourth brother, you are really brave!"
Liu Hong grinned: "Don't praise me so much, I just want to give it a try..."
The emperor's grandfather founded the Three Thousand Yulin Lang with the Xianrong Kingdom, and they were victorious in the south and north. He also wanted to see if he could be like the emperor's grandfather and build a unique and powerful army in the world.
How can a man from the old Liu family say no?
"Brother Cong, I asked you to come here because I need your help with two things..."
When it came to business, Jia Cong immediately sat down and said: "No matter what my fourth brother says, I will do my best within my ability."
"First of all, our crown prince is recruiting good sons from Gyeonggi Province. I can't leave the palace, so you can keep an eye on it."
The East Palace is about to be established. The tedious enrolment ceremony these days is enough for him. He has no time to leave the palace.
Liu Hong thought about it and decided that this matter still had to be looked at personally. After much deliberation, Jia Cong was the most suitable person.
If the people below are not dedicated enough or dare to do tricks...
Haha, it’s been five years since Yuanyou, no one would dare to mess with Jia Cong, the fat orange cat!
Jia Cong patted his chest: "Don't worry, Fourth Brother, leave this matter to me!"
"Of course I'm relieved..."
Despite his young age, Jia Cong is much more reliable in handling affairs than the old oil man in the officialdom.
Liu Hong nodded and continued: "One more thing, I want to borrow General Eleven from you. Grandpa Huang said that General Eleven defeated the wolf guard of the Tatar Khan outside the Tartar King's tent. I I want to ask him to be the head coach of Prince Liuli."
I am the chief instructor of the 800,000-strong Forbidden Army—Leopard Head Lin Chong!
Uh, it's a joke.
Jia Cong hesitated for a moment: "I have to ask Uncle Eleven for his opinion on this matter first..."
"Of course, Grandpa Huang also said that it is not advisable to force the appointment of General Eleven."
Liu Hong is considerate and a very good talker.
Jia Shiyi’s identity
Specially, he is one of the greatest assets Jia Daishan left to Rongguo Mansion.
Of the hundreds of soldiers, there are not many left. Jia She placed Jia Shiyi next to his youngest son because he took a fancy to Jia Shiyi's loyalty and ability.
The current Jia Cong cannot do without Jia Shiyi's protection. As a prince, Liu Hong really couldn't do what others liked, although he was extremely envious of Jia Shiyi's ability.
"By the way, I'll have someone take you to Fengzao Palace in a moment. Concubine Xianmu sent someone here earlier, saying she has something to do with you."
"Big sister, are you looking for me?"
Jia Cong's words of "big sister" made Liu Hong's mouth twitch.
Father, my son has lost his whole life in vain!
Yuanchun is pregnant, and the treatment of Fengzao Palace can be said to be second only to the imperial concubine Yang's Yikun Palace.
The current emperor has very few heirs, and the Queen Mother sees it in her eyes and is anxious in her heart. Cining Palace and Yikun Palace have always tolerated Zhou Guiren being so noisy in the palace. Is it for the sake of the dragon in her belly?
Now that Zhou's pregnancy was a thing of the past, Yuanchun was pregnant at this time, and the rewards from Empress Dowager Cao and the Imperial Concubine were sent to Fengzao Palace free of charge.
When Jia Cong followed the chamberlain to Fengzao Palace, Yuan Chun was taking a leisurely walk in the yard.
The door of the side hall was open, and the busy palace people were sorting out the congratulatory gifts sent by each palace.
"Brother Cong, come here..."
Yuanchun beckoned Jia Cong to come closer, raised his hand and rubbed his head: "Have you finished dealing with the Fourth Prince's affairs?"
Jia Cong grinned and said, "It's nothing important. After talking for a while, fourth brother sent someone to send me here."
Fourth brother?
The expression on Yuanchun's face was a little unnatural. Alas, this royal family's seniority is really embarrassing.
The fourth prince wanted to call her mother concubine...
"What do you want from me, big sister?"
Jia Cong's eyes were on Yuanchun's still flat belly, and he said happily to himself: Man can conquer nature, and Yuanchun's fate has finally been changed.
With this child, Yuanchun's position becomes more secure!
The two siblings were walking slowly in the yard, and Yuan Chun told Jia Cong the reason why they came to see him today.
It turned out that Yuanchun was found to be pregnant, and the originally planned time and procedures for the family visit had to be drastically changed.
After all, Longzi is the most important, and the Ministry of Rites does not dare to argue that the etiquette system is greater than Longzi. So Qin Tianjian re-selected a date, the sixth day of October.
In this way, Yuanchun has just passed the most dangerous first trimester of pregnancy, and it is not very cold at that time. By reducing the cumbersome rituals, more time can be left for relatives to get along with each other.
"Brother Cong went back to talk to my grandmother, uncle and father. The Queen Mother was kind and said that it would be difficult for me to leave the palace, so she would stay at home for a few more days."
"Really?"
There was such a surprise, Jia Cong's eyes widened.
It is as difficult for a palace concubine to leave the palace as it is to ascend to heaven, that is, in this dynasty, in the past, unless there was an imperial edict to follow the emperor out of the palace, there would be no chance for the palace concubine to leave the Forbidden City.
Jia Cong clapped his hands and said, "This is a great grace. The old lady is not happy even if she knows it!"
Concubine Shu had only left the palace two days ago to visit her relatives. She left the palace early in the morning and returned in the evening, which took less than six hours.
Of course, this is also related to Concubine Shu's character. She would rather bury her head in a pile of books than socialize with others.
"Maybe it's five days, maybe it's seven days. The Ministry of Rites is still quarreling with the palace at the moment. The palace will send the palace servants to settle in first. The uncle must be busy recently and can't take care of the family. Keep an eye on it when you go back. Don't worry. What kind of trouble is this?"
Yuanchun had a cautious temper and repeatedly warned: "The servants in our family have always been unruly. They should be punished and beaten when they deserve it. They must not let outsiders see the joke. Also, I asked your Majesty for your grace. The second brother will not have any great future in this life. With this grace, he will at least be rich and prosperous for the rest of his life."
"What grace?"
Yuanchun smiled and said, "Cheng Zhilang, who is in the sixth grade, is waiting for the imperial edict."
Cheng Zhilang is a literary scholar. To put it bluntly, he gets paid for nothing and does not have to work.
Hanlin will be waiting for the edict
I mean, I have no rank, but I have the power to go directly to the palace to see the king.
Yuanchun got a life-saving charm for Baoyu!
"Baoyu is different from you. His temperament has no hope of officialdom in this life. He is also a pure and kind person, and he may be tricked by others one day. With this decree, those who want to make plans for him will also have to think carefully. "
Jia Cong shook his head: "Sister, you are worrying too much. I am still here. If anyone dares to bully Brother Bao while I am here, I will definitely bring someone to beat him."
Yuanchun smiled and didn't refute, just rubbed his cousin's head.
"Don't talk about this, your second brother Bao is about to reach the age of marriage. The matter of marriage has been a natural match since ancient times. With this imperial edict, our family can also marry him."
Why did you talk about marrying Baoyu a wife? Is there any melon to eat?
Jia Cong immediately became a melon-eater: "Sister, do you have someone in mind?"
"Last time my grandmother came to the palace and told me about it, I invited Yang Niangniang to help me find suitable candidates. There are a few suitable candidates at the moment..."
Halfway through his words, Yuanchun suddenly hit Jia Cong on the head: "Okay, this matter hasn't happened yet, so I won't mention it for now."
Seeing that the skin of the melon was cut open and suddenly taken away, the baby was not happy.
Bang!
The noise coming from the direction of the side hall interrupted the chat between the two siblings. Jia Cong raised his eyes and saw several panicked chambermaids suddenly running out of the side hall.
Yuanchun frowned and was about to scold him when he saw one of the chamberlains running up to him, knelt down and said, "Your Majesty, the Buddha statue sent by Empress De Fei accidentally fell to the ground and broke into pieces, revealing one... one... …”
"A body of what? Tell me clearly!"
"A baby's body!"
The side hall was filled with congratulatory gifts from various palaces, and large and small boxes took up most of the room.
However, under a table, fragments of painted clay sculptures were scattered, and in the center of the fragments was a small mummy.
Jia Cong suppressed his nausea and took a closer look. It was indeed a baby.
"Empress De Fei has always been frugal. When she came here the day before yesterday, she brought this Buddha statue with her. She said that she asked the palace servants to go to the Great Baoen Temple to ask for it. Originally, the slave wanted to move the Buddha statue to the incense table, but her hand slipped... "
Baoqin stopped the chattering of the chamberlain and whispered to Jia Cong: "Third Master, your Majesty has sent someone to invite the Imperial Concubine. This matter involves the Imperial Concubine, and the Empress asked her servants to escort you out of the palace first."
Jia Cong nodded. It looked like there was strife in the harem. As a foreign minister, it would be better for him not to get too involved.
With Yuanchun's ability, there shouldn't be any problem in handling these.
"Sister Xian Fei, I really didn't do it, you have to believe me!"
Before Jia Cong could reach the gate of Fengzao Palace, he was startled by a howl outside the door.
The veins on Baoqin's forehead were pulsing, and he whispered: "This is Concubine De..."
"Okay, stop howling, no one said it was you!"
This voice was very familiar to Jia Cong. He scolded people so gently. It was because the imperial concubine had not run away.
Sure enough, when Jia Cong was thinking about whether to avoid it, he saw Mrs. Yang leading a woman in pink palace clothes to appear at the door.
"Your Majesty Jia Cong pays homage to the Imperial Concubine, and pays homage to Concubine De."
When Yang saw Jia Cong, she was stunned, and then said gently: "Get up quickly, where is your sister?"
"I pay my respects to Sister Yang, and I pay my respects to Sister De Fei."
Just as he was talking, Yuanchun had already walked out of the front hall and bowed down.
Yang was about to go over and help her up, but she saw Feng trotting over quickly, bending her knees as a salute, and kept wailing: "Sister Xian Fei, I really didn't do that. Really, you have to believe me." ..."
To be honest, Feng's appearance is first-class, and his voice is also first-class.
Being canonized as one of the four concubines by the emperor must have an advantage. Jia Cong can probably tell the truth from Feng's words and deeds.
Most likely it was not Feng's fault.
But the voice was too loud, and he could see that Yang was almost unable to maintain her gentleness due to the noise.
"Sister De Fei, please get up. I have never doubted my sister..."
Feng kept talking, and Yuan Chun was upset by the noise.
She suddenly held her stomach: "Ouch, it hurts..."
At this moment, Ms. Feng immediately stopped wailing, grabbed Yuan Chun and screamed: "Quick, quick, call the imperial doctor!"
"Okay, help her back to the house, and don't make any noise. As long as you don't make any noise, she will be fine."
Yuanchun glanced gratefully at Mr. Yang who was speaking, smiled bitterly and said, "I'm fine. Maybe I was in a hurry just now..."
Jia Cong still couldn't leave. I don't know what Yang was thinking, but she actually kept him here.
After all this trouble, the chamberlain in the palace who was proficient in autopsy methods had completed the preliminary examination.
"I'm reporting to you, but it's the body of a baby, about a month old. I think this baby is probably Ajahn Kumanthong from Siam."
The three Yangs didn't know what Ajahn Gumantong was, but Jia Cong had some idea.
Ajahn Gumanthong, Siamese folk wizards often use baby corpses to make baby spirits. People who worship them believe that it can bring good luck, wealth, etc. to the owner. Z.br>
Of course, this almost taboo method also has the meaning of curse. It doesn't matter whether it is useful or not, but if the magic of witchcraft appears in the palace, it may cause trouble.
Concubine Feng, who had been comforted, turned pale with fright and was so trembling that she couldn't even use her loud voice.
Whenever witchcraft appears in the palace, there will be no bloodshed!
"It's not me, it's really not me..."
"Your Majesty has arrived!"
Everyone was about to get up and go out to greet him, but saw the emperor already striding in.
"I pay my respects to you..."
"Okay, don't bow around, just sit down."
Liu Heng was not in a good mood. He was reviewing memorials at the Qinzheng Palace when suddenly the harem came to report that something happened again in Fengzao Palace.
Worried about Yuanchun's unborn son, he abandoned political affairs and hurried over, but he heard the servant said it was a witchcraft.
"Your Majesty, it really wasn't me who did this. I have never had any intention of harming anyone. Please be more careful, Your Majesty..."
After meeting the emperor, Feng seemed to have found a backbone, and started howling at the top of her voice. The emperor was already upset, but now his face became even darker.
The veins on his forehead were throbbing, and he was about to scold him when he saw Yang shaking her head slightly at him.
Forget it, Feng's family comes from a small family and is timid. If he gets scared, he has to coax him by himself.
"Okay, I know it's not you."
Liu Heng stopped Feng's wailing, and then winked at Jia Cong: "Jia Cong, you and your companion should go to Dabaoen Temple to check now and see what is going on with this Buddha statue."
Jia Cong wanted to leave a long time ago. Eating melons is very delicious, but eating melons from the harem is risky, and you might get into trouble at some point.
He quickly bowed to the emperor and hurriedly left Fengzao Palace with Xia Shouzhong.
The carriage traveled south leisurely, along Zhengyang Street and out of Yongding Gate. Jia Cong chatted with Xia Shouzhong: "Xia Gong, is it so unsafe in the palace? Will eldest sister be in danger?"
"Little slippery man, you're trying to trick us!"
Xia Shouzhong knocked Jia Cong on the head and said hehe: "Don't worry, Concubine Xian is safe. The Queen Mother and the Imperial Concubine are both staring at Fengzao Palace. They have sent nearly ten capable people. Besides, , want to murder the Concubine Xian under our noses, haha..."
With Zhou's lessons learned, the harem was cleaned up again.
This time Yuanchun was pregnant, the Queen Mother and the Imperial Concubine personally sent their confidants to Fengzao Palace. The emperor even asked Xia Shouzhong to keep an eye on every move in the harem to ensure that Yuanchun could successfully conceive and give birth to the child.
This Fengzao Palace can be said to be one of the safest places in the palace.
"That's not to say that people have done witchcraft.
Technique..."
Xia Shouzhong rolled his eyes. This guy really deserves a beating. He doesn't deserve a slap in the face!
"This is a wake-up call for our family. It seems we still need to take more precautions."
While he was talking, the carriage stopped outside the Great Baoen Temple, escorted by a team of dragon guards.
Xia Shouzhong, who was dressed in ordinary clothes, led Jia Cong, who was in royal cat clothes, into the temple and walked straight to the monastery where the presiding monk was.
The Buddha statue that Concubine De sent to Fengzao Palace was indeed made and consecrated by Dabaoen Temple. It was big, beautiful and cheap enough, and many families in Beijing took it home to worship it.
This kind of pottery Buddha statues are mostly worshiped by ordinary people who believe in Buddhism. As for Empress Dowager De, she has a Pixiu-like temperament and can spend several taels of silver to go out of her way to invite people back to the palace, which is already very good.
Jia Cong looked at the ceramic Buddha statues enshrined in the side hall and asked, "Master Kongyan, who made these Buddha statues?"
"These are all made in Xiaoguozhuang outside the plum forest in the south of the temple. Many people in Xiaoguozhuang are proficient in making pottery. As for these Buddha statues, there is a capable man in Xiaoguozhuang who is good at clay sculpture and pottery making. He was once a master craftsman of the Ministry of Industry... "
Xiaoguozhuang is only two-quarters of an hour away from Dabaoen Temple. Monk Kongyan sent his disciple, Monk Jianxing, to accompany them there.
Jianxing is the manager of Da Baoen Temple who handles these secular affairs, and he is familiar with Guo Xiaosi, the former master craftsman who made the Buddha statues.
When everyone came to Xiaoguo Village, there were all kinds of earth stoves everywhere in this village of about a hundred households, and the entire village was submerged in smoke and dust.
Jia Cong coughed repeatedly and complained: "Ahem, I didn't expect that I could still breathe smog in this life!"
"Smog? What is smog?"
Xia Shouzhong also coughed several times and was about to ask about this novel word when he heard the captain of the Dragon Guard beside him suddenly shout: "What kind of person is so sneaky and won't come out yet?"
It turned out that there was a man lying at the back door of the earth furnace not far away. After the captain shouted, the man did not move.
On the contrary, Jia Cong had better eyesight and noticed something was wrong: "The earthen stove is still burning, no one can bear the heat and lie down on the stove. Hurry and see if he is alive or dead!"
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